Fated Love
by Lolarosa
Summary: My entry into the "When Love was New" contest. Edward has been Bella's best friend for as long as she can remember. What happens when her feelings begin to change? Will Edward return her love?


**When Love was New Contest**

**Title of Entry: **Fated Love

**Your Pen Name: **LolaRosa

**If you would like to see all the stories that are a part of this contest visit: When Love Was New C2 Community  
http://www(DOT)fanfiction(DOT)net/community/When_Love_Was_New_Contest_Entries/73614/ **

**A/N Thank you to my beta ChangedbyEdward, without you I would not being writing. Thank you to Eyes_of_Topaz and Ekkimuh for being my "go to girls", you two rock my socks off. **

**Disclaimer- SM owns all things Twilight. I only get to play with them, before sending them home with a pat on the back and a plastered on smile.**

**And without further ado, here is my entry into "When Love Was New"**

_"Meeting you was fate, becoming your friend was a choice, falling in love with you was beyond my control!"_  
Source Unknown

Taking a deep breath in an attempt to even out my racing heart, I prepared myself for what I was about to do. My best friend was waiting for me behind the large oak doors looming in front of me.

I received the phone call two days ago, telling me to meet him here. Since then, the same gnawing pain had burned in the pit of my stomach. I flexed my fingers trying to will them to stop shaking and cooperate. The image of Edward waiting for me outside of my window, his copper hair blowing in the breeze, appeared behind my closed lids. His bottom lip was jutted out as his gleaming green eyes pleaded with me to join him. Borrowed strength coursed through my veins as my eyes flew open and I gained the resolve to meet my destiny.

The cold iron bit into the flesh of my hand as I tugged on the large metal handle. A loud moan erupted from the hinges as the door grated against the rough stone underneath.

My ears recognized the chorus of voices before my eyes focused on the mass of people huddled inside. I scanned the faces of the crowd, searching only for my Edward.

The crowd shifted and my heart swelled with anticipation as the one I had been seeking came in plain view of my sight. He was directly in front of me at the other end of the crowded hall. My feet began to carry me across the distance separating us before I had even consciously made the decision to do so. Each step seemed as if it were in slow motion. I could hear voices all around me, but their faces were blurred as my eyes would only focus on him before me. After what seemed like an eternity, I finally made it to his side, my heart thundering in my chest as I took in his appearance.

He looked so happy, so full of life. The knot in my stomach tightened as I continued to drink in his features. The small creases that would form next to his left eye as he wore my favorite half grin. The way that his wild copper hair looked as though it could never be tamed. His flawless skin had always been so pale, but tonight he looked almost iridescent. I grazed the tips of my fingers along his cheek as I pushed a stray strand of hair back into place.

So cold, so beautiful.

I wanted to stay there with him forever.

Strong, warm arms wrapped around my shoulders and slowly pulled me away from him. I tried to fight against them, tried to explain that I didn't want to leave, but they just gripped harder and guided me to a chair against the wall. A pair of piercing blue eyes obscured my view as I watched Calisle's lips move, but did not hear a word that came out of them. His hand gripped my shoulder firmly before he made his way back to his son's side and continued greeting their guests.

Apparently I would have to continue my appraisal from a distance. The space between us did nothing to dull his beauty, or my heartache. I needed to be closer to him.

I didn't understand my overwhelming need to be near him, it had not been like this before. He had always just been my best friend, always there when I needed him. From the first day that I met him he had been saving me from myself.

_We were in fifth grade._ _I had just gotten my tray and was attempting to identify the items on my tray, when one foot tripped_ _over_ _the other and I went flailing towards the hard tile of the cafeteria__, t__he contents of my tray effectively scattering at the feet of my fellow classmates and my signature blush turning my cheeks a deep crimson. I began to gather the remnants of my lunch, expecting to spend yet another meal hiding from the world, when a soft hand rested on my shoulder. "Are you alright?"  
_  
He didn't try to offer any profound words of wisdom or a mocking response, just a simple question and the blossom of our life-long friendship. From that day forward, Edward and I were nearly inseparable, his poise and grace a constant contrast to my klutziness. I knew that I could always turn to him for anything and I usually did. As we grew older, I never fathomed the idea of pursuing him as I knew that he was out of my league.

Our years spent in high school only confirmed the fact that I would never be able to call him mine. Breathtakingly beautiful girls always pursued him and questioned his reasoning behind having a nerd for a best friend. I had always waited for the day when he would listen to their harsh words and forget about me. But he never let that happen, telling each of them that I was his best friend and would always come before anyone else. He never let anyone come between us, and I never allowed my real feelings to show.

I was content to have him as the most important person in my life, my best friend.

When had my feelings changed? When had I moved from being content to being incapable of going on with out him?

My feelings for him had always been there, buried under layers of self doubt and pity. Something inside me ignited and suddenly the all the pieces fused together.

I realized I had been in love with him all along, most likely since the first moment I had laid eyes on him, and I knew I was incapable of letting him go.

It had always been him - it would always be him.

I had to tell him, I had to let him know that I was in love with him.

My eardrums ached from the sound of my drumming heart beating haphazardly inside my chest. I gathered the needed courage and focused on the spot where my love was. The thundering in my chest increased and panic began to set in as my eyes fell upon a faded blue wall.

He had moved.  
_  
How __did I miss__ him leaving that spot?_ My head reeled as my eyes darted across the room, never completely fixating on a single object. _Damn my height_. Straining my neck, I stretched onto my toes, attempting to peer over the crowd. Just as my knees were about to give out, I found him.

He had made his way out to the field with his family following close behind him. The soft wind whipped through the hair of his sisters as the bright sun shone down onto them. This was my only chance - it was now or never.

Raw energy surged through me as I pushed my way through the faceless crowd. The fire burning within my soul intensified, changing from a burning ember to a raging inferno as my feet carried me closer to my soulmate.

I broke free of the crowds and stumbled into the field before me. I had to tell him before he left; he had to know before he was gone, before it was too late. Overturning a low table, I made my way past his stunned family and fell to my knees beside him.

I removed the only barrier lying between me and my beloved, exposing his beautiful face. I pulled from his strength and urged myself to share with him the feelings that I had been denying for so long.

"I love you, Edward. I have always loved you. I am so sorry for the way that I treated you. You were always there for me, and yet I was never fully honest with you. You never gave up on me, never doubted me, and I should have told you sooner. I am so sorry that I didn't tell you sooner." Sobs tore from my throat, exposing my heart to the world. "Please tell me that I'm not too late. Please don't leave me."

The first tear rolled silently down my cheek, marking a clear path for the rest to follow.

The air became void of movement. My plea was met with silence.

Spirit crushing, earth shattering silence.

Tears streaked my flesh as my heart burst into a thousand molten pieces, burning me from the inside out.

I felt hands on me, pulling me back, embracing me.

I clawed at them. _Why __won't__ they let me go?_ I wanted to go to him, to stay with him for eternity.

Strong arms continued to hold me, rocking me in an attempt to dull my sorrow. These were not the hands that I wanted touching me. Only his arms could comfort me and take away the overwhelming pain crushing my soul. He had been there waiting next to my bed after I fell down a flight of stairs. He was the one to pick up the pieces after I was attacked by a rabid wolf. He was the other half to my whole. As a near lifetime of memories flashed before my eyes, the tiny remnants of my shattered heart began incinerating my body.

The burning intensified as they lowered the lid to his coffin, the sound of the latch catching pushed me over the edge into oblivion. No longer able to support my own weight, I collapsed into the arms tightly gripping my hollow torso. I clung to them for support.

"Shhh Bella, we are here for you," Carlisle whispered in my ear as he rocked me against his chest.

"He loved you, too, he always did." My frail frame shook convulsively from the sobs that wracked my body. I gripped fiercely onto my last connection with Edward.

I watched, as though in a dream, as they lowered the love of my life into the cold, hard ground; the hole in my chest ripping my soul apart.

**A/N Please do NOT hesitate to leave me a review, they are my exact brand of heroin and I could really use a fix.**

**Please check out LillieCullen on FF, she is also working on a fantastic original piece called "Manhunt." The link to this site is on her profile page and you can find her under my favorites. It is worth the time and more. **


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